Beautifully illustrated, this re-examination of the controversial artist Paul Gauguin is the first full biography in over 30 years. Gauguin is mainly known as a giant of post-Impressionist painting whose bold colours and compositions shook up the western art world. Less well known is that he was a stockbroker in Paris who after the 1882 financial crash struggled to sustain his artistry, working as a tarpaulin salesman in Copenhagen, a canal digger in Panama City and a journalist exposing the injustices of French colonial rule in Tahiti. His adventurous and complicated life included a privileged upbringing in Peru, a rebellious youth in France, immersion in the energy of the Paris art scene, an infamous encounter with Vincent van Gogh and the ceaseless draw of French Polynesia.